The Jungle Giants - 17 February 2021, Alhumbra

w/ San Cisco, Argentina

Coming off the back of Hottest 100 success, San Cisco joined forces with The Jungle Giants to tour the country with the Politely Awkward Tour. Joining these two powerhouses on the Brisbane leg of the tour was local gig junkies Argentina. To say this gig was simply awesome would be an understatement. It was all kinds of awesome!

Argentina are gathering quite a name for themselves of late. They can be seen almost every weekend playing either Oh Hello! for Cobra Kai or some other venue around town. Tonight they played the opening spot at Alhambra. I do believe they are even better than when I saw them in late December.

They have a sweet backing track that lays the foundations for all their tracks, and it complements what they are producing live on their instruments. They do have a strong percussive element to their sound in two floor toms out the front, in addition to a full kit. This is a good thing. I hear that the band has been in the studio, too. I predict their EP is going to be something special.

Up next were San Cisco. I was under the impression that these guys were headlining the tour, but I was mistaken. This isn’t a bad thing, just unexpected... especially coming of the back of hitting number seven on Triple J’s Hottest 100. The band stepped up their game tonight to hit it right out of the ball park. So much tighter then when I saw them in September. They do like to have a lot of nonsense lyrics in their songs. Take “Lover” for example, opening with a do-do-da-da... not to mention the hit "Awkward" itself. It does have a ridiculously catchy synth riff though... who am I kidding? This band is awesome! Despite a little bit of generic Indie-ness thrown in the mix, they have something quite brilliant going on. They finished the set with “Awkward”, easily their most unique song.

By this stage, Alhambra was beyond packed. From the back of the room you couldn’t even see the band, and from the front, it was a hot, sweaty mosh. When The Jungle Giants finally took to the stage, oh what a ruckus they created! A solid set from the band that certainly are doing well for themselves. “Mr. Polite” has been a smash on Triple J, and I don’t see this band slowing down as we enter the guts of 2012.

The night was insane. So many people, so much awesome music, too little dancing space. For these two bands, Alhambra is not the venue anymore. They are moving up in the world.

Astrid and the Asteroids - 27 January 2012, The Zoo

w/ Bec Laughton, Miss Elm

It’s always an exciting night when an EP is released, and I am always privileged to be apart of it. Especially when the band is one that has seemingly come out from outer space. The band: Astrid and the Asteroids. The Venue: The Zoo, Brisbane, Australia, Southern Hemisphere, Planet Earth. The mission: Bring the house down.

Up first for the night however was the quirky Miss Elm. She had a mighty shaky start taking a second go at the opening chords to the first song. Now, I know this young lady has got a few gigs up her sleeve, but it sounded like it was one of her first gig at a friends’ birthday, not a opening spot at The Zoo. Her friendly crowd banter was all over the place. She would start introducing her next song, then mid-sentence stop to introduce her band, before starting again with the long introduction to her song. Also, you need to have a solid set list. Not “let the crowd decided”, which they didn’t, making her a little bit awkward on stage tossing a mascot in the air to decide. Um.. ok! Despite this, her songs are really catchy numbers with “Second Hand” being one of my particular favorites.

Up next was Bec Laughton with a nautical themed stage setting. In all honesty, she blew me away. Put three vocalists in sailor hats, with keys, bass, guitar, drums, and a cajon and you get something full of soul and funk. This was as professional as an up and coming band can get. I found myself unintentionally pulsing to the music, and feeling the funky-reggae-soulfulness that this small white young lady was throwing in our faces. This is a good thing. The three-part harmony between Bec and the other two singers, a girl and a guy, was delightful! Their voices meshed so well together within the songs, and that made the whole package just that much more amazing. Something that really stood out for me, in this band compared to Miss Elm for example, was the passion and presentation on stage. Every member was a part of the music, especially the three singers. There was not a second where they were not moving or getting into the groove of the songs their were playing. Also, Bec Laughton’s vocals in themselves? Beautiful. Simple, and powerfully intense.

And then, just as a real asteroid was passing a “near-miss” from Earth, came Astrid and her Asteroids! In spandex! Just like all good little astronauts.. After a musical introduction from the Asteroids, Astrid came onto stage to get the party started. Her music has a jazz flavor to it, which is subtle, yet evident within her pop-infused song writing. The Asteroids left the stage at one point for Astrid to perform “Electric Ceiling” a serious and somber song that showed off the frontwoman’s sensational vocals.

She has a vocal range that most females would die for! Her lower register is full and rich while her high register, well, it’s astronomical! There was a bit of a space theme to the bands’ songs and it works really well, setting the band apart from the ordinary. They played songs from their debut EP Horoscopes, which they were launching tonight, new material, as well as a cover of Justin Timberlake’s “Senorita” which I though may was a bold choice, but turned out to be utterly incredible! Full of spunk.

What a night, full of so much brand new music from new artists. Look them up and you won’t be disappointed!